Stop Treating Your Financial Literacy Like a Situationship: It’s Time to Commit to Your Bank Account
By Nina — I'm the friend who tells you what you need to hear about your situationship. ·
Look, I love a good Brooklyn rooftop happy hour as much as the next girl, but can we talk about the elephant in the room? Every time I bring up 'financial literacy' with my friends, they look at me like I just suggested we spend our Friday night doing taxes. We treat our bank accounts exactly like that guy who texts you at 11:45 PM on a Tuesday: we ignore the red flags, we pretend everything is fine as long as the card doesn't decline at the register, and we’re terrified to ask for a commitment.
But here’s the thing: your bank account is the one partner you’re actually stuck with for life. If you’re playing hard to get with your own money, you’re not mysterious—you’re just setting yourself up to be broke and stressed. It’s September 2026. If you haven't mastered your coin by now, consider this your intervention. We are breaking up with financial avoidance today.
Stop 'Ghosting' Your Bank Statements
I have friends who haven't logged into their banking app in three weeks because they’re 'stressed about seeing the number.' Are you kidding me? If you were dating someone and you were scared to look at their phone because you knew they were talking to other people, you’d leave. Why are you ghosting your own finances?
Financial literacy isn't about being a Wall Street bro in a Patagonia vest. It’s just about knowing what’s coming in and what’s going out.
The Action Plan: Log into your bank account right now. Look at the last 30 days of transactions. Identify the 'ghosting' expenses—those subscriptions you forgot about, the $14 salads you didn't need, and the late fees that are basically just a tax on your own disorganization. If you don't look at the bill, you can’t negotiate the terms. Own the number, even if it’s ugly. You can’t fix what you refuse to acknowledge.
Stop Using 'Retail Therapy' as a Love Language
You know that feeling when you’ve had a bad week at the agency and you ‘treat yourself’ to a designer bag or a random impulse buy because you deserve it? Babe, that’s not self-care. That’s emotional spending. You’re trying to fill a void with stuff that’s going to end up at the bottom of your closet in six months.
I’m not saying you can’t buy nice things. I’m saying you need to stop using money to self-soothe. When you’re stressed, your brain is looking for a hit of dopamine, and retail sites are engineered to give it to you. But a $300 Zara haul isn't going to fix your burnout or your lack of boundaries at work.
The Action Plan: Implement the '48-Hour Rule.' If you see something you ‘need,’ put it in the cart and close the tab. If you still want it in 48 hours, maybe buy it. Spoiler alert: 90% of the time, the urge will vanish once the temporary emotional high wears off. Save that money for something that actually serves your future, like an emergency fund that lets you quit a job you hate.
Are You Investing or Are You Just 'Seeing Where This Goes'?
I hear this all the time: 'Nina, I’ll start investing when I have more money.' No, you won't. You’ll just spend more money. Financial literacy is understanding that your money needs to work as hard as you do. If your savings are sitting in a standard checking account, inflation is basically eating your money while you sleep. It’s like being in a relationship where you’re putting in 100% of the effort and the other person is just taking up space.
If you aren't putting at least a small percentage of your paycheck into a high-yield savings account or a retirement fund, you’re letting your financial potential go to waste. You don’t need to be a finance expert to start. You just need to be consistent.
The Action Plan: Automate your savings. If your employer offers a 401k match, you better be contributing enough to get that free money. It’s literally a raise you’re currently leaving on the table. If you’re freelancing, open a SEP IRA or a Roth IRA. Treat this like an auto-pay subscription. If you never see the money in your checking account, you won't miss it. Make your future self a priority, because nobody else is going to do it for you.
Own Your Worth, Inside and Out
Financial literacy is the ultimate form of self-love. When you understand your money, you aren't reliant on a paycheck-to-paycheck cycle that keeps you trapped in situationships—both at work and in your personal life. Having a 'f*ck you' fund gives you the power to walk away from a toxic boss or an emotionally unavailable partner.
Stop waiting for a sign or for your 'real life' to start. Your life is happening right now, in 2026. If you want a different outcome, you have to stop doing the same things that keep you stuck. It’s time to grow up, get your head out of the sand, and start treating your wallet with the same respect you demand from everyone else.
You’ve got this, but you’ve got to start today. No more excuses, no more 'I'll start next month.' Next month is a lie.
Do you have a specific money habit that you know is sabotaging you, or are you still pretending that ignoring your bank balance is a 'vibe'? Send me a DM or drop a comment below—let’s talk about it. No judgment, just the real talk you actually need.